


One up

by BlueRasinPie



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics)
Genre: Bruce Wayne is a Good Parent, Drama, Near Death Experiences
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-10
Updated: 2018-07-10
Packaged: 2019-06-08 06:42:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,555
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15237654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueRasinPie/pseuds/BlueRasinPie
Summary: His death isn't coming unexpected this time. This time he's prepared for it.





	One up

He was dying.

In hindsight, he should’ve honestly seen this coming. It was only a matter of time before his second life would be coming to an end this soon. It wasn’t like he enjoyed being alive for the second time much in the first place but he did stupidly think he would end up having time this time around to appreciate the daily mundane routines that he had never bothered to care for with his first chance.

And maybe he doesn’t really remember it all that clearly right now but he swears his lungs are more constricted right now than they were when the Joker had broken all his ribs under the force of the crowbar. Shallow breaths were all he could currently manage and even those short inhalations hurt his throat and forced him to use his lungs more than what was comfortable enough.

And the sweating was definitely worse now than it had been when he first woken up inside his coffin. Forget the heat of that box, his skin literally feels like a furnace now. He wouldn’t be surprised if he had been slow roasted over a fire when he had passed out up until he’d woken up a few moments ago.

He clenches his shut eyes tighter as he fights to regain power over his exhausted limbs. No energy left in him to even try to escape this place. He couldn’t even talk his way out thanks to the ragged coughs that ripped into his throat. The disorientation from trying to stand up was definitely blamed on the dull ache that assaulted his head. He could even hear the clicking sounds of the grim reaper tapping his scythe on the ground, waiting for his soul to finally be released from his body.

Impatient this time much?

It was well and officially over for him now.

“Goodbye world. Was nice knowing you again.”

The silence is thick as he waits.

 

A short moment later Bruce’s stern voice echoes in the Batcave.

“You’re not dying, Jason.”

Just hearing that voice makes Jason’s head throb even louder. He opens his eyes to glare at Bruce, annoyed. He couldn’t even have this moment to rest in peace without someone being there to ruin it?

“Do you want me to write out my own eulogy so it’d get you to believe me?”

Bruce doesn’t bother answering.

“Here lies Jason Todd, the guy who managed to die twice before most people could live out half their lives.” 

“…”

“Better hope I don’t come back again for round three Bruce. Maybe then I’ll actually be able to live out a full life cycle. Could just imagine what great excuse you’ll give to the press about me walking around for a third time.” A coughing fit has him doubling over but it doesn’t deter him from stopping.

Bruce still doesn’t say anything after Jason’s airways clear up so he decides to continue, bent on destroying Bruce’s quiet space like Bruce had ruined his.

“Hey, whatever happened to the Red Hood? You don’t think he finally ended up kicking the bucket, no? Nah Jimmy, heard his ghost still haunts the Batcave. Some even say he follows Batman himself.”

He doesn’t even realize he’s grinning at his own idea until Bruce finally speaks up from where he’s stationed at the Batcomputer, surprising him a little bit.

“A fever isn’t going to kill you.”

It wasn’t just a fever. Could Bruce really not see that he was literally dying again? Then again, Bruce had never actually been there when he died the first time so Jason could reluctantly forgive him for missing all the signs this time.

“Denial doesn’t suit you, B.” 

He slouches even further and spins the chair around slowly, not wanting to get nauseous on top of every symptom he’s had already, but clearly becoming increasingly bored. And yeah, he was going to go six feet under again soon but he didn’t want his last days to be ones where Bruce banned him from any night time patrol and controlled his life as if he were still a kid. 

It wasn’t fair. Dick, Tim and Damian were all allowed out on their own but Jason had to be ‘escorted’ from his apartment to the cave and have a chaperone watching over him like a hawk? Even worse than a hawk, a Bat of all creatures. Just his luck. And because Bruce had to keep monitor over the three other birds, Jason had to be there with him so Bruce could make sure he wasn’t going to make a break for it when he turned his back.

“I’m leaving.” 

He makes no moves to stand up though, just directs his glare at the back of Bruce’s head. If he just had some laser power heat vision right about now—

“No you’re not. Not until you get better.”

Jason crosses his arms. “You know I don’t have to listen to you anymore.”

Bruce’s fingers pause with their typing, miraculously. 

“Yes. I know.”

Jason can’t see Bruce’s face from where he rolled this comfy, spinning chair all the way back to but he is surprised momentarily by how soft and hesitant his tone was.

Bruce was still blaming himself for everything?

A bright idea forms in Jason’s mind.

He lowers his tone to guiltily accuse Bruce with a stuffy voice. “You know, out of all people I would’ve thought you understood me best.” 

No reply for a quite a while but the sounds of the bats screeching in the cave weren’t louder than the silence.

Just as Jason disappointingly thinks Bruce isn’t going to take the bait, Bruce turns around in his own rotating chair and faces him, face as stoic as ever.

“Why’s that?”

Hook, line and sinker.

Jason quickly clears any traces of disbelief on his face and sags in the chair, pouting as he averts he eyes from Bruce’s. The skills he had learned when he was younger were hopefully paying off now.

“You know best how I died before. Thought you’d take me seriously this time.”

It was a low blow, bringing up the topic of his death up to Bruce of all people, he knew. The Bat had taken Jason’s death harder than Jason had for his own self and brooded over it for longer than anyone else. It was a taboo subject, but Bruce forced his hand into bringing it up. 

It was Bruce’s own fault that he was a helicopter parent. He should know best by now that Jason didn’t need his overbearing watch.

The long face is to be expected soon. Then after that, Bruce is going to either let him go after the two of them fight over the matter, or after Bruce decides to indulge in his misery and guilt more than actually look after Jason. The second option would work out better so that Jason could easily make a quick and clean escape when Bruce isn’t paying attention anymore.

In either scenario Jason wins so it’s only a matter of waiting on the verdict now.

Bruce chuckles instead.

That was not part of the plan.

“Okay, what’ve you done with the actual Bruce?” Jason scoots the chair backwards and looks on with caution, the act he was trying to maintain forgotten.

Bruce shakes his head, as if he had just remembered something funny but decides to shake it off and just doesn’t bother to share it.

He meets Jason’s eyes when he speaks again with the ghost of the smile still playing on his face.

“As long as I’m around you aren’t dying again, Jason.”

Jason’s jaw closes as he feels a lump slowly forming in his throat as the silence keeps the echo of the words. 

It was because of the cough certainly. And the blurring of his eyes just meant that he was going to black out anytime soon once more, he was sure of it.

He barely manages to hide the small smile as he works on clearing any signs on his face that might give his old man anymore leverage over the situation. 

He realizes then that Bruce just beat him at his own game.

“Oh, come on! You totally knew where I was going with all that, didn’t you?”

Bruce doesn’t answer again as he turns back around and goes back to work.

Jason decides to roll over his own chair to the computer after a while so he has the desk to lay his arms on. The annoying exhaustion was coming back again and he doesn't feel like climbing the stairs to his room so the desk is good enough for now.

Just a minor inconvenience that Bruce was right besides him. He could get over it.

Bruce is staring at the window screen when Jason turns his head in his folded arms to look at him.

“Why aren’t you out on patrol with the others anyway?” 

“Needed a day off.”

“Pft, bet you didn’t come up with that one on your own. Did Alfred take the suit away?”

“...Something like that.”

Just about when he starts to doze off after a few long and quiet moments, he hears Bruce speak.

“Did..."

“What?”

“Did you really haunt the cave when you were gone?”

A smirk followed by a sniffle.

“I followed your every footstep B.”

**Author's Note:**

> I mean, there's always at least one person who's the family's drama king/queen ;D


End file.
